ABSTRACT:
Dental caries is a infectious microbiologic disease of the tooth that results in localised dissolution and destruction of calcified tissues. Its seen in all age groups, few preventive measures have been evaluated to prevent the caries. Xylitol is a polysugar, naturally found in low concentrations in the fibres of many fruits and vegetables, and can be extracted from various berries, oats, and mushrooms, as well as fibrous material such as corn husks and sugar cane baggase and birch has been shown to reduce dental caries when taken naturally as fruits, food and when mixed with chewing gums and milk. Dental caries are prevalent in acidic pH where Streptococcus mutans (MS) ferment and does resulting in demineralization of tooth this acidic pH is created by consumption of carbohydrate food which results in decreased salivary secretion which in turn results in demineralization of tooth, where as Streptococcus mutans cannot ferment xylitol thus it reduces MS by altering there metabolic pathway and enhances remineralization and helps arrest dentinal caries. This review discuss the antimicrobial mode of action of mushroom, chicory extracts, xylitol containing chewing gums, milk product and effect of various juices on Streptococcus mutans, the etiologic agent of human dental caries.